Oldham triumphs again as Best City at North West in Bloom

OLDHAM HAS dug deep to retain its title of Best City at the prestigious North West in Bloom competition.

The judges were wowed by the borough’s Bloom and Grow entry and awarded them top prize – for the seventh year in a row – at an awards ceremony in Southport attended by community gardening champions from across the region.

The award was the icing on the cake for the borough which recently attained a ‘Gold’ certificate in the same category at the Royal Horticultural Society’s Britain in Bloom.

The WOW Bed in Oldham town centre

Thanks to that result, and following triumphs in 2012 and 2014, Oldham been nominated to take part in a ‘Champions of Champions’ event next year against six gold-winning cities, towns and villages.

Councillor Barbara Brownridge, Oldham Council’s Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods and Co-operatives, said: “To win Best City for the seventh year in a row is a real honour and shows our entry has been warmly welcomed by not only our whole community but also the judges.

“This award gives everyone involved a real sense of achievement and reflects the hard work, dedication and commitment from residents, schools and businesses in what has been a real co-operative project.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has taken the time to get involved to deliver such a fantastic result.”

This Best City award is the culmination of a year’s worth of work involving local businesses, residents and community groups with a theme this year of health and wellbeing.

The ‘WOW Bed’ centrepiece in Market Place contains four key elements of a fit and healthy lifestyle – giant toothpaste and brush highlights oral hygiene while the bed represents how everyone needs a good night’s sleep to recharge their batteries.

The colourful kites represent the importance of getting out and about and being active while the giant children’s building blocks and vegetables show how nutrition and diet are the building blocks to a healthy life.